Some people have been up in arms about Dave Mustaine's recent tacit (and meaningless) endorsement of Rick Santorum.

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"Earlier in the election, I was completely oblivious as to who Rick Santorum was, but when the dude went home to be with his daughter when she was sick, that was very commendable. Also, just watching how he hasn't gotten into doing these horrible, horrible attack ads like Mitt Romney's done against Newt Gingrich, and then the volume at whichNewt has gone back at Romney… You know, I think Santorum has some presidential qualities, and I'm hoping that if it does come down to it, we'll see a Republican in the White House… and that it's Rick Santorum."

That list grew later in the week when Mustaine said his heterosexuality precludes him from supporting gay marriage.

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When asked if he supports gay marriage, Mustaine said, "Well, since I'm not gay, the answer to that would be no." Dave was then questioned if he would support legislation to make marriage between a man and another man legal. He replied, "I'm Christian. The answer to that would be no."

Although Mustaine's transparent politics are of no interest to me, one of the many Mustaine-bashing blog pieces cited a recent statement made by Dillinger Escape Plan frontman Greg Puciato as an example of, "one person who is not alienating his fanbase." Below is an interaction between Mr. Puciato and an alleged fan that took place on his website. The fan, who claimed to be a homosexual, asked why, in his opinion, "homophobia is still huge in metal." Here is Mr. Puciato's response:

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I really think masculinity insecurity issues are the problem, and listening to testosterone charged music and putting on a tough guy front enables the people with those issues to live in a sort of constructed “man suit”, helping them to feel more adequate in their gender/sex role confusion. It masks the fact that they probably need therapy to deal with whatever went wrong in their transition from boyhood to manhood. Combine that with lack of education and culture, two things that we have a massive problem with in the US, and there you have it. It grosses me out. I think the younger generations are obviously progressing, everything progresses with time, but it’s annoying to wait for the world around you to play catch up when you’re already on that level. Understanding of homosexuality is one of the largest humanist issues of our time. Well, that and educating people about the evils that organized religion have perpetuated in society. Those two things go hand in hand really. It’s frustrating that the United States leans so much on Christianity politically, a religion that teaches at its fundamental core complete intolerance toward homosexuality. Every time a candidate endorses Christianity or uses it as a tool to get votes of bible belt states, he’s saying “go fuck yourselves” to all of the gay population. The problem needs to be dissolved through different angles. Proper education and culture exposure will catch everyone up, but again, waiting is annoying….and I totally see what you are saying about the comical false masculinity that is unfortunately prevalent in metal and hip hop and country music. It’s not a coincidence that homophobia is most rampant in those three genres, and that those genres are primarily embraced by low income groups, groups that have low exposure to quality education, and almost no exposure to travel or different cultures. Punk and hardcore ethics have always been more refreshing and progressive, however, which is partly why we as a band feel more aligned with those movements than with “metal” as far as mindset. The real movements, not the “check it out I’m wearing a CBGB’s shirt I bought at Nordstroms” mall versions. Sorry I’m rambling…too much caffeine to type this very coherently, but it is something I actually feel fairly passionately about so I’m glad you brought it up. I scroll through most of these but this I felt I needed to say something about. If we ever do a show that I feel is gonna have an overtly high level of homophobes in the audience, I promise to wear a shirt that has a picture of a dude sucking a cock on the front of it or something. Funny how the same people who would act violently offended by that would probably cheer if there were two girls making out or going down on one another onstage. Like I said, fucking insecure babies trapped in man bodies. Masculinity insecurity issues. Hopefully they’ll all have gay kids.

Let me also throw in how proud we are as a band that our fans appear to be accepting and tolerant and progressive as well. Haven’t met a DEP fan ever that didn’t seem like a quality human being. I’m pretty sure that we turn everyone off that isn’t that way. I’d like to at least. Don’t come in here with that shit.

As for you, the person who submitted this question….don’t let that shit get you down. Feeling ostracized may sting at times, but the truth is that you’re a forward person in a primitive time. Moving at a faster speed than others. Being ahead of the pack? That’s called being a leader. Embrace it.

How can we be sure that homosexuality isn't caused by pathogens? Wouldn't some people who have it want to know if it is? Any insuation that it can be cured or that it's a disease is taboo and that's ridiculous because we really know little about it and only have a few flimsy studies to point to genetics.

"Punk and hardcore ethics have always been more refreshing and progressive, however, which is partly why we as a band feel more aligned with those movements than with “metal” as far as mindset."

That explains what happened to metal during the last decade. Punk is where you go when you have no direction. That is why every band makes a punk album when they run out of ideas. It's easy and people seem to like it. If by "people" you mean random idiots on the street.

A lot of the more overt scorn for homosexuality you encounter in the metal world has more to do with contempt for liberal moralizing than it does for man-to-man buttsex. Generally people don't really give a shit about that, but they do have a negative reaction to the moralistic bullying of multicultural pluralism. Consequently, casual racism, 'homophobia', etc, flourishes in the underground where people feel like they can let their hair down and air their universal irreverence.

We're sick of demasculinization and other anti-reality prospects. Face it, heteros find homosexuality to be gross. That doesn't mean we can't be polite and even friends with the gay dudes down the block. We need however that they not shove it down our throats (hehe) by being publicly gay. It's better that we have bachelors who might spend a night or two at the Blue Oyster Bar than in-your-face queers as a protected political group.

Typical liberal/progressive twaddle - a product of modernism in pure specimen! Besdies, what has Dillinger Escape Plan got to do with Metal one way or the other? I've successfully ignored this band right alone, and will continue to comfortably do so.

We need however that they not shove it down our throats (hehe) by being publicly gay.

I don't really see the logic behind this. If promoting quality is our aim, then surely we should promote actual achievements, rather than our rather mundane ability to breed. Those who don't have this "skill" simply want basic rights so that they have the same opportunities for meaningful achievements. And surely whether something is done in public is irrelevant to its merit?

The way I read it he wasn't even really attacking the kind of people that frequent this forum. There's the liberal, all inclusive view he's espousing, and there's the metalhead meat heads, uneducated and masculine, which he seems to be attacking, and then there's anus, which is neither of these things.

Beyond that, I actually appreciate what this man is really accomplishing. Drive a dividing wedge between the sheep and the metallions. The former do not belong to metal nor it to them anyway.

I think this is a good point. One must never let the silver lining elude them.

Clarification and drawing lines is necessary in situations like this. They want to live by a certain set of corrupt values, but they want to do it over there and isolated. Good for them. In fact, this is a situation where everyone wins. They get what they want, I (really we, if you're with me) get what I want, and those undecided get to see the result of this shitty worldview.

I feel sorry for this paragon of progressive humanity and all the forward-thinking fans his band has. It must be so tough to have to wait for rest of us (unenlightened boobs and insecure children in 'man suits') to come around. At least his egalitarian utopia is a foregone conclusion and we can all rest easy.

Wouldn't it be funny if the people who thought they were enlightened were actually totally wrong?

Ancient Europe was the most fascist and least efficient place I can think of, ten thousand little communities each with their own rules and standards, but out of that came most of our art and literature

In the same way we make fun of the older generations in the new world but they built everything we have and did it better than we can now

I feel sorry for this paragon of progressive humanity and all the forward-thinking fans his band has. It must be so tough to have to wait for rest of us (unenlightened boobs and insecure children in 'man suits') to come around. At least his egalitarian utopia is a foregone conclusion and we can all rest easy.

Indeed. Not all of us mouth-breathers can be so intellectually and emotionally astute as to fully comprehend that the embrace of faggotry, national/racial suicide, radical-feminism and a host of similarly "progressive" ideas and ideals shall set us all on the path to Overman-dom!!!

Curiously, I've been listening to this bleeding-heart bilge since I was a teenager...I'm 42 now...and for all this "progress," I only see the species moving backwards. I'm so pedestrian that way...